


Iron Man Origins

by Scarlet_Avenger (Lady_Lightning)



Series: Littleverse [11]
Category: Iron Man (Comics), Iron Man (Movies)
Genre: Age Play, Awesome James "Rhodey" Rhodes, Awesome Pepper Potts, BAMF Pepper Potts, Daddy!Rhodey, James "Rhodey" Rhodes & Tony Stark Friendship, Little Headspace, Little!Tony, Littleverse, Non-Sexual Age Play, Other, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Needs a Hug
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-18
Updated: 2019-11-18
Packaged: 2021-02-12 13:43:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 13,132
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21477340
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lady_Lightning/pseuds/Scarlet_Avenger
Summary: This is how Iron Man came to be and how Rhodey knew to help his buddy when he needed it most. Turns out Rhodey and Tony, even when they aren't on the same page, end up in the same place at the end.Rhodey always helped Tony when he needed it. They were family. See how they become an even closer family than before as Tony finds his way.
Relationships: James "Rhodey" Rhodes & Tony Stark
Series: Littleverse [11]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1356301
Comments: 3
Kudos: 49





	1. Afghanistan

**Author's Note:**

> This is a Littleverse Origin that is also beginning when the character's origin starts.
> 
> Tony's little headspace is activated after the stress of Afghanistan- let's see how it affects his and Rhodey's dynamics and watch them come together after Tony figures out his path.

Tony had a hard year… and it just kept getting worse. Let’s just say Tony had changed. A lot. He was Iron Man now. There was no changing that. He flew around with a weaponized suit, destroying all his previous weapons of war that ended up in the wrong hands. He had a score to settle and he was going to make sure the check was clean at the end of the day.

He was Iron Man. Born from the ashes of cruelty and war, Tony was determined to put an end to the war that created him. Nobody deserved to see the cruelty of life that the Ten Rings was capable of- the things that the Ten Rings had done to him. Tony was going to stop them by pure destructive force if he had to.

This was their fault. Iron Man would never have come to be if they hadn’t held him captive for three months. There was nothing he could do to change what happened and he wasn’t sure he wanted to change things if he could. The world needed him now. They needed Iron Man.

Tony wasn’t going to fail people when they needed him most. He refused to let that happen again. Tony wasn’t going to fail. Not this time. Never again.

\---

Tony was late for his plane. It wasn’t really a shock, especially to Rhodey, who had been standing there waiting for Tony to show up for three hours. During the plane ride, Tony had insisted on drinking and kept apologizing but Rhodey just wasn’t in the mood.

Tony had been late, making them arrive in Afghanistan even later which had thrown off the whole weapons demonstration. Fortunately, and only because it was Tony, the demo still went perfectly. They were Tony’s weapons and they always packed a punch. It impressed the military and it made Rhodey happy to see Tony succeed.

Someone had to be the person to contradict Howard and be happy to see Tony succeed. Tony’s mind was a wonder, indeed. It was probably the most amazing thing that Rhodey had ever seen. The Jericho missile was his newest success.

It was too bad that the next time he’d see Tony was three months later after Tony disappeared into the caves where the Ten Rings resided. He’d left Tony with a simple goodbye, never thinking that he wouldn’t see his best friend again.

As soon as Tony was gone, James felt the obsessive need to search for him. He was the only person in the military that pushed the search after the first month. Everyone believed that Tony wasn’t going to be found. He was either dead or on the slight chance that he wasn’t, they wouldn’t be seeing him until he was.

Rhodey, however, still didn’t give up and sent out search helicopters out frequently. He knew that Tony- great mind that he was- wouldn’t be so easy to kill. Everyone else was going to learn that too, ‘reality’ be damned. He was going to bring Tony Stark back home if it was the last thing he did.

\---

Tony had been wandering for who knows how long. The desert was hot and he was dehydrated. That was the least of his problems. Yinsen had died and Tony was alone again. He got lost in thought as he wandered the desert, trying to put space between himself and the caves he just escaped.

His mind could only think of all the torture he’d lived through, as well as the loss. He walked away with injuries and even new fears. Tony wasn’t going to be able to look at masses of water without being terrified- at least not for a long time. 

He’d be hearing gunshots for months.

Hearing helicopter blades brought him from his thoughts and mindless wandering. He yelled out, lifting his right arm into the air and throwing up a peace sign as he dropped to his knees. The choppers landed, and out ran a squad of soldiers, Rhodey leading them.

Tony didn’t look at anyone but Rhodey. He couldn’t. An overwhelming sense of anxiety came over him when he looked at anyone but Rhodey. He didn’t like strangers, he never had. But that cave just made his dislike for strangers into a fear of them.

The plane ride back to Malibu was exhausting. Rhodey stuck by his side the whole time, Tony wouldn’t let him go even if Rhodey wanted him to. Rhodey helped him clean up but when the doctor finally came in to look at him, Tony only in clean boxers and a black t-shirt, Tony hid. He clung to Rhodey and wouldn’t look at the doctor at all.

He didn’t answer any questions the doctor asked him directly, instead, whispering to Rhodey and Rhodey relayed the message. Once Tony fell asleep the doctor was finally able to get a look at him. He handed Rhodey a sling for Tony’s arm and shoulder and then moved to look over his chest and check his lungs. 

It was then that Tony snapped awake, hugging himself and protecting his chest lividly as the doctor tried to calm him. Rhodey just dismissed the doctor when it was obvious that Tony wasn’t about to let him near again. “Tony, someone has to look at your chest,” Rhodey stressed.

Tony’s only response was shaking his head wildly as he whined no. Rhodey could swear he was crying too. “Tony, they have to make sure that thing won’t kill you,” Rhodey told him. The doctors didn’t even know about the hunk of metal in his chest yet and that was exactly why Tony wouldn’t let them near. 

“It won’t,” Tony promised. “It’s doing the opposite as we speak,” he assured. “It’s powering an electromagnet that is keeping shrapnel from entering my heart.”

“Tony,” Rhodey said with a warning voice. One look at Tony’s teary, terrified expression had Rhodey giving up completely. “Can I look at it, at least?” Rhodey asked. Tony looked at him skeptically for a few moments before tugging his shirt up and letting Rhodey look closely at the reactor.

“What is that, anyway?” Rhodey asked as he backed away letting Tony drop his shirt to cover his chest again.

“A miniaturized arc reactor. Like the one powering the factory at home.” Tony told him with a yawn. He was dozing, swaying back and forth as he sat on the gurney. 

“Get some sleep, Tony,” Rhodey said, pushing him to lay down. “They have some clothes for you when you wake up.”

“Stay with me?” Tony whispered brokenly without letting Rhodey’s wrist go. He wasn’t even sure when he’d grabbed it. He just wanted all the comfort that Rhodey was willing to give, the kind his parents never gave. He didn’t like being on a plane full of strangers and he certainly wouldn’t be able to sleep if he was alone.

Rhodey only nodded, sitting on the bed next to Tony as he laid down to sleep.


	2. Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony gets home from Afghanistan but things aren't the same as they were before.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy! :)

When Tony woke up he was completely different. Well, he, in Rhodey’s opinion, was acting cold but more like he had before Afghanistan. Tony acted like he hadn’t just been a captive for three months, more than likely tortured, and seen a close friend of his die in front of him.

Rhodey warned him to watch his step as Tony walked toward Pepper and Happy, telling Rhodey to get rid of the medics. It was a colder reunion than Rhodey had been expecting considering how Tony had clung to him. He’d hoped, or more of expected to see Tony hug Pepper and Happy at least.

But he didn’t. Tony just talked, got into the car and had them call for a press conference.

\---

The press conference was something else. It started with Tony having everyone sit on the ground to him announcing that he was shutting down the weapons manufacturing division of Stark International. 

Rhodey was shocked, Stark Industries made at least fifty percent of their stock from weapons manufacturing. They were ironmongers. Obie took over as Tony left, saying something about an internal discussion at SI but Rhodey wasn’t paying much attention. 

The only thing Rhodey had his eyes on Tony. He was worried and would have to check in with him at some point because there was definitely something different, something wrong, with Tony.

\---

After a discussion with Obie, one that had Tony walking away a little petrified Tony kept all further data stored on his personal servers, keeping it out of SI’s reach. He wasn’t sure who he could trust anymore.

He looked at the MRK1 designs, giving it a spin as he thought. He had work to do and the first thing on the list was upgrading the arc reactor chest piece. With the new unit in, he didn’t have to worry and began working on the MRK2 suit.

Maybe in his hands, the suit could do some good. It might just help him sleep at night if he knew his protection was left in his hands. There was also a need to help the people in Afghanistan, and he remembered Yinsen. He wasn’t going to waste his life. Not anymore.

He was going to make this right. He knew that the suit was the way to do it.

\---

Rhodey popped in as soon as he could. It had been about two weeks since he’d seen Tony at the press conference. When he asked JARVIS where Tony was, even if he was sure Tony was in his workshop, the AI responded and confirmed his suspicion. JARVIS also told Rhodey that Tony hadn’t left since coming home from the press conference. 

JARVIS had Dummy and You bringing Tony food and coffee plus water and milk but most of it went untouched. The coffee and sometimes the food would make its way into Tony’s stomach and that’ what made Rhodey drag Tony from his workshop to make him eat and sleep. As soon as he’d walked in he knew that Tony needed a shower, food, and sleep.

Rhodey showing up made Tony feel loads better. Not even Pepper and Happy were able to provide as much relief as Rhodey did. He still loved them dearly and they were the only other people he trusted, but Rhodey was different.

He whined as Rhodey dragged him from the workshop. He went as far as grabbing the doorframe to keep Rhodey from taking him. Of course, Tony had dropped plenty of weight and Rhodey was strong thanks to his time in the Air Force so all Rhodey had to do was lift Tony, throw him over one shoulder and walk away as Tony squirmed in his place.

“Rhodey!” He whined. “Put me down!”

“Tony you need to bathe, eat, and sleep,” Rhodey said as he made his way up the stairs. Rhodey took note that Tony whined and kept squirming. Though with how it looked like Tony was starving himself, he wasn’t going to be strong enough to actually get away from him.

Rhodey marched Tony right up to his personal bathroom and even went as far as to turn on the bathwater for him. Tony looked like he was ready to collapse if he stood much longer. Though judging by Tony’s face, the bath might not have been the best idea.

Tony looked absolutely terrified, completely frozen in place. “Tony? What’s wrong?”

“No bath,” Tony whimpered, eyes teary. Rhodey shut the water off, letting it drain away and then hugged Tony tight. Tony clung to him, just as he had on the plane, his grip so tight that his knuckles were white and Rhodey’s shirt wrinkled around his fingers.

Tony suddenly got heavier in Rhodey’s embrace, having his legs give out from exhaustion. Rhodey, unsure of what to do, struggled to keep Tony upright, soon deciding to just lift him from the ground completely. 

It wasn’t hard to lift him up, Rhodey just settled Tony on his hip like he would have a toddler. Tony didn’t seem to mind- or maybe he just didn’t notice because of how hard he was sobbing. Whatever it was that was wrong had something to do with water. 

Tony needed to get clean though and Rhodey wasn’t just going to leave him covered in grease and oil. “What if I stay with you and make sure you’re okay?” Rhodey asked. There wasn’t much else he could do. Tony couldn’t stand for a shower and he was too petrified of the water to be around a large amount alone.

Tony stiffened in his hold but eventually nodded. Had Tony just wiped his nose on Rhodey’s shirt? He heard Tony sniffling as he pulled back to look at Tony’s face. Tony looked absolutely miserable.

Rhodey started the water for the bath again, sitting Tony down on the floor as he went under the sink to grab Tony’s shampoos and body wash. He saw a bottle of lavender-scented bubble bath, completely unopened and glanced at Tony.

Tony always loved lavender. He wasn’t sure Tony had known the bubble bath was there or maybe he’d just never actually used it but Rhodey was sure the scent would help him relax and calm down.

“Hey, Tony,” Rhodey asked as he pulled the bottle from the cabinet. “How about we use some of this?” He showed the bottle to Tony who just stared at it blankly before looking back to Rhodey. Tony looked like a sobbing child with the way he was acting. It reminded Rhodey of the few times he’d babysat before.

With no straight answer, Rhodey opened the bottle and poured some into the running water. The smell of lavender exploded through the room and Rhodey could visibly see Tony relax. Tony was strangely mute but Rhodey just proceeded to get him into the bath. 

Tony once again tensed and started to shiver. The water was hot, just the way Rhodey knew that Tony liked it so the shivering must have been from whatever the water was making him remember. Drawing his attention should help keep the fear at bay so Rhodey just talked to Tony as he helped get the man clean.

Tony eventually got less tense, but never once said a thing. His muteness was really making Rhodey start to worry. Then the anger set in. Whoever had taken Tony was going to pay. His bubbly, irresponsible, kind, caring best friend had gone into those caves and a nervous, distrusting, terrified boy had come out.

It was almost as if Tony was reliving when Howard was alive. Rhodey had heard from Jarvis, Tony’s old caregiver, that Tony was a shy little boy. He almost never talked, never got excited, was as perfectly behaved like a boy in fear would’ve been. Tony was acting just like Jarvis had described.

\---

Getting Tony out of the bath, dried, and dressed was another challenge. He had to eat before Rhodey would let him sleep, though. The problem was, Tony was dozing even as Rhodey tugged his shirt over his head. 

He’d been half asleep since Rhodey pulled him from the hot bathwater. Rhodey had even carried Tony into his bedroom where his clothes were as Tony clearly wasn’t going to be able to walk. Whatever was going on with Tony- Rhodey was going to have to do some research to see if there was a way he could help. 

A protein shake was the only thing Rhodey could get into Tony’s stomach while he was half asleep. At least Tony had drunk the whole thing before passing out completely, making Rhodey carry him once again to his bedroom. Rhodey covered Tony with the blankets before heading out to where Tony’s Starkpad sat. 

“JARVIS?”

“Yes, Colonel Rhodes?” The AI responded. 

“What’s going on with Tony?” Rhodey asked as he fumbled with Tony’s tablet thoughtfully. There was definitely something going on with Tony and Rhodey wanted to know just what it was.

“I cannot tell you as Sir has requested,” JARVIS responded, “but Sir has said nothing of showing you,” 

Rhodey grinned, loving the way the AI was able to find loopholes in his own programming. The screen of Tony’s Starkpad lighting up with plenty of videos for Rhodey to watch. They were all brief, just a few minutes each, ten minutes at most, and then JARVIS had brought up a filtered internet search.

“How long has he been doing this, JARVIS?” Rhodey had asked. 

“Since he came home from Afghanistan,” The AI replied helpfully. 

Age-play. That’s what Tony was doing and Rhodey wasn’t even sure he was aware of it. Tony would be working one minute and the next he’d be coloring pictures, playing with his bots like he did when he was younger and he’d even thrown a couple of tantrums which JARVIS had to intervene in. 

Tony, of course, wasn’t pleased when the AI shut down the power tools and things he’d been using after having such a bad fit and would eventually just sit there and sob out of frustration. Sometimes, Tony would just randomly start crying. Rhodey could hear the pure terror and confusion when Tony burst into tears and it broke his heart.

“There’s one more thing,” JARVIS started. “Sir has barely slept since coming home, but when he does it always ends up with nightmares and sometimes even wet sheets. There have even been a few instances where he’s had problems while awake, though completely exhausted.

“He wet his bed?” Rhodey asked rhetorically, thinking deeply. Tony had a highly stressful life, Rhodey knew that. Something like this though… it had to be more than the caves of Afghanistan that did this to Tony. It could be that Tony always longed for an actual childhood, one that Howard had robbed him of and the caves and terror and stress had finally been the thing that had flipped that switch in Tony’s mind.

Rhodey understood. Tony hadn’t gotten a childhood. He hadn’t had his parent’s approval nor their affection. Rhodey could understand why Tony would long for something like that. Rhodey wanted to help Tony feel loved. Rhodey loved Tony like a brother. If Tony needed something like this, Rhodey was going to help. Rhodey always helped Tony when he could.

“He’s going to need some protection,” Rhodey whispered as he went to do some online shopping. Diapers were going to be the number one thing in his cart. If Tony was getting so scared from his dreams that he had accidents, Rhodey was going to make sure Tony wore them at least at night time. Sure JARVIS had told him that the problem had happened once or twice during the day but only when Tony was exhausted. If Tony proved to Rhodey that he needed them during the day too, Rhodey was going to make that happen.

Unfortunately, Rhodey got a call and had to go back to base to deal with whatever had come up. He’d have to come back to Tony as soon as he left work. He rushed from Tony’s Malibu home, headed straight for the base.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> See you soon! ;)


	3. The Suit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony works on his suit, advancing his old designs and making his suit better than it was before.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy the chapter! :)

Tony had an amazing first test flight of his suit after a few minor complications. He didn’t focus on anything but making progress on the suit, not even that night Rhodey came by. He definitely didn’t want to think of the night Rhodey came by.

Tony was going through improvements on the suit with JARVIS when he saw that his annual party was being held at the Disney Concert Hall that night. “JARVIS did we get an invite for that?”

“I have no record of an invitation, Sir,” JARVIS responded promptly. Tony messed with the mask of the suit until JARVIS spoke again. Tony had JARVIS use the gold titanium alloy from one of his satellites this time, hoping it’d take care of a majority of the problems the suit was having. “The render is complete,”

“A little ostentatious, don’t you think?” Tony commented.

“What was I thinking? You’re usually so discreet,” came JARVIS’ sarcastic reply. Not even Tony was sure how an AI could sound so sarcastic. Tony let out a small sigh as he reached for his thermos to pour himself another drink.

“Tell you what? Throw a little hot-rod red in there,” Tony told him as he looked to one of his favorite cars.

“Yes, that should help you keep a low profile,” JARVIS told him. JARVIS worked his magic and soon there was a new design on the suit. “The render is complete,”

“Yeah, I like it. Fabricate it, paint it.” Tony told him.

“Commencing automated assembly. Estimated completion time is five hours,”

“Don’t wait up for me honey,” Tony told him as he looked to his watch. He had a party to crash.

\---

Tony pulled up to the Disney Concert Hall in a new sports car, buttoning his suit closed as he walked up the stairs. There were girls already freaking out as he walked toward the party. One approached asking if he remembered her and he responded with a bland ‘sure don’t’ as he passed a friend. He gave the man a pat of the shoulder as he approached Obie.

“What’s a world coming to when a guy’s got to crash his own party?” He asked Obie with a slight smile.

Obie chuckled, “Look at you! Hey, what a surprise!” The reporter Obie had been talking to had clicked a few pictures as they stood there.

“I’ll see you inside,” Tony told him. Obie paused him for a second before letting him continue.

“Uh, hey, take it slow, alright? I think I got the board right where we want them,” Obie warned with a low, hushed voice.

“You got it,” Tony instantly replied. “Just cabin fever, I’ll just be a minute,” Tony told him as he continued his way into the party. 

From there, he had been approached by Coulson from some government agency or another. He was being pulled into a discussion about a debriefing until he locked his eyes onto Pepper. She looked stunning in a backless, navy blue dress and he instantly went over to her, mumbling something or another as he gave Phil a handshake.

Tony danced with Pepper before leading her to the roof for some air. Soon enough, the moment had gotten overheated and Pepper had suggested he go get them some drinks. Pepper asked for a vodka martini, extra dry with at least three olives. 

Tony approached the bar, paid and leaned back to wait for his drinks. A girl, one he recognized approached him with an angered look on her face. She instantly started grilling him about the weapons manufacturing of his business, even showing him some pictures of Yinsen’s home, Gulmira. Stark weapons were being carried by the Ten Rings, and Tony’s heart stopped.

“When were these taken?” He asked her.

“Yesterday,” She whispered, slight anger in her voice.

“I didn’t approve any shipment,” Tony retorted, frustrated.

“Well, your company did,” She replied easily, clearly blaming Tony for everything.  
“Well, I’m not my company.” He said, controlling his anger the best he could and walking away. SI was double-dealing under the table. They had to be. He took the pictures and headed straight for Obie. 

“Have you seen these pictures?” Tony whispered to Obie as the man tried to fend off the press. Obie turned to him to focus on Tony’s accusations. “Huh? What’s going on in Gulmira?”

Obie took him by the shoulder and turned Tony away from the press to speak to him more privately. “Tony, Tony, you can’t be this naive,” Obie told him.

“No, you know what? I was naive before,” Tony whispered angrily. “When they said, here’s the line, we don’t cross it, this is how we do business,” Tony told Obie. “If we’re double-dealing under the table,” Obie put his head down as Tony said that and Tony took note. “Are we?” Tony asked.

Stane just looked at him, pulled his shoulder so they were standing next to each other and facing the press. “Let’s take a picture, c’mon,” Obie said. “Picture time!” Obie told the press. Tony put his arm around Obie just like Obie was doing to him and then the man was whispering in his ear, “Tony, who do you think locked you out?” Obie asked. “I was the one that filed the injunction against you,” He admitted. “It was the only way I could protect you,” Obie walked away, those being the last words he spoke to Tony.

Tony just stared after Obie, a look of contempt on his face. Stane wouldn’t get away with this. His company wouldn’t either. He was going to stop it.

\---

Tony sat in his workshop, eyes fixed angrily on his TV as he watched the news about Gulmira. He was messing with the suit’s repulsor stabilizer on his right hand as he looked to the screen. He got angrier by the second and got up.

He aimed the repulsor to the other end of the workshop. It did plenty of damage, taking down some of the lights hanging from the ceiling. His face took a look of thought and confusion- he never thought the repulsors would actually be able to cause damage. He then aimed at the windows of the shop that were by the stairs. He fired, three shots breaking each pane of glass.

Tony then walked over to where the suit was packed away, already in a skin-tight flight suit. The flooring opened up and he stepped his feet into the armor, machinery surrounding him as the suit was slowly placed over his body. The last piece to go on was the helmet, clicking noises surrounding him as the jaw piece settled into place before the faceplate snapped down and shut, the eyes lighting up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> See you soon! ;)


	4. The Mission

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony is on a mission and nothing will get in his way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy! :)

Tony flew straight for Gulmira, breaking the sound barrier as he rushed over to help. Just as he got there, the violence was picking up pace. Tony landed next to where a member of the Ten Rings had a man kneeling on the ground, ready to shoot the man in the head. Everyone turned when they heard him approach and all eyes were on him.

Just how Tony wanted it. He smiled a bit as he rose from his kneeling position, the guns starting to shoot. Tony went and instantly attacked, launching Ring member after Ring member away with a different attack each time. He fired his repulsors at three different members but when he turned to attack the rest, they were using the civilians as shields.

Tony stood down, his suit locking onto all the targets before small bullets popped up from his shoulders, shooting each of the Rings until none were left standing. The boy ran over to the man still kneeling on the ground and Tony walked over to a wall where a major head of the Ten Rings was hiding.

Tony shoved his hand through the cement wall right next to the man’s head, chipping the paint on his suit. He pulled the man through the wall, throwing him to the feet of the civilians. “He’s all yours,” Tony said darkly as he took off for the weapons cache not far from where he was. He was going to destroy those Stark weapons.

He’d recognized that man from the caves, Tony was sure. In his thought, he got hit by a missile from a tank, instantly being blown from the sky and hitting the ground. He got up from the crater and let out a puff of air. The only thing he could hear was the mechanics of his suit still functioning with ease. He dodged another missile from the tank and shooting a small one of his own. He turned away and seconds later the tank blew up in a fiery explosion of orange and red.

The Ten Rings shot at him as he approached the weaponry but that did nothing to stop him. He simply took off, hovering about twenty feet high and started to fire on the weapons, destroying everything in sight. The first thing he shot at was a small group of three Jerchico missiles that were ready to fire, aiming his repulsors proudly.

With a smile, he flew away from the destroyed weapons cache. 

~BACK IN CALIFORNIA~

EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE

A bogey appeared on their screens and the room erupted in a flurry of voices.

“What the hell was that?” one voice asked.

“Are we clear to go in there?” another replied.

“No, sir, they were using human shields,” one responded. “We never got the green light.”

“Get the state,” Someone commanded. “They’re going to be all over this.

“We got a bogey,” Someone announced as the red dot made its way across the screen.

“Wasn’t Air Force!” someone yelled.

“Get CIA on the line!”

“I’ve got them on the line, they want to know if it’s us!”

“No, it is definitely not us, sir,” a young man affirmed as he looked away from his screen. 

“Wasn’t navy,”

“Wasn’t marines!”

“I need answers, can I please get eyes on target?” The man asked over all the clamoring.

“Get me Colonel Rhodes from weapons development down here now!”

AFGHANISTAN

Tony was flying on his way back home. Some of his anger was alleviated now that some of his weapons were out of enemy hands but he still needed to get all of them out of circulation. He continued on his way, thinking of a plan to get the information he knew he’d need if he was going to continue this.

BACK AT BASE

Rhodey walked into the room, instantly set on his task as he saw everyone clamoring and trying to find answers. “We ran an ID check, cross-referenced with all known databases. We have nothing,” the major reported.

“Any high-altitude surveillance in the region?” Rhodey asked.

“We got an A-WAC and a Global Hawk in the area.” Someone confirmed.

“So this thing just appeared out of nowhere? How come didn’t it show up on the radar?” Rhodey asked.

“We got a minimal radar cross-section, sir,”

“Is it stealth?” Rhodey wondered.

“No, sir,” Someone replied, “It’s tiny. We think it’s an unmanned aerial vehicle.”

“Colonel, what are we dealing with here?” The major asked. 

“Let me make a call,” Rhodey told him. Tony was going to get a major lecture if he was causing Rhodey problems at work again. The last thing he needed was Tony making another mistake that affected his job. 

Rhodey thought back to the argument he had with Tony a few weeks ago. Tony had come to the base to ask Rhodey to get in on a project he was working on and Rhodey knew from the buzz coming from Tony that it was going to be great. Rhodey was happy to get Tony to start building the US more weapons.

Unfortunately, Tony wasn’t building this for the military and that’s what they had fought about. Rhodey hadn’t spoken to Tony since. He pulled the phone from the desk and dialed Tony’s private number.

\---

Tony’s suit began to ring as an unknown number called him. He answered the call knowing only a few people knew of his secure line. “Hello?”

“Tony?” Rhodey asked from his place at the desk.

“This is?” Tony asked, more to just be difficult than not knowing who had called.

“It’s Rhodes.”

“Sorry? Hello?”

“I said it’s Rhodes,” Rhodey responded patiently. 

“Speak up, please,” Tony requested. 

“What in the hell is that noise?” Rhodey asked.

“Oh, yeah, I’m driving with the top down.” Tony covered.

“Yeah, well, I need your help right now,” Rhodey admitted.

“It’s funny how that works, huh?” Tony mumbled into Rhodey’s ear.

“Yeah,” Rhodey replied, more interested in his situation than Tony’s jokes. “Speaking of funny, we’ve got a weapons depot that was just blown up a few clicks from where you were being held captive,” Rhodey told him.

“Well, uh, that’s a, uh, that’s a hotspot. Sounds like someone stepped in and did your job for ya,” Tony said, sort of out of breath.

“Why do you sound out of breath, Tony?” Rhodey asked, already knowing that Tony was lying.

“I’m not, I was just jogging in the canyon.” Tony lied.

“I thought you were driving.” Rhodey accused.

“Right,” Tony replied. “I was driving, uh, to the canyon, where I’m gonna jog,”

“You sure you don’t have any tech in that area that I should know about?” Rhodey asked one more time.

“Nope!” Tony confirmed way too eagerly.

“Bogey spotted!” Someone yelled.

“Okay good cause I’m staring at one right now and it’s about to be blown to kingdom come,” Rhodey told him.

“Oop, that’s my exit,” Tony replied as he rolled in his suit to get away from the raptors. They followed him easily.

“Ballroom this is whiplash one.” The pilot said. “I’ve got the bogey in my sights.”

“Whiplash one, what is it?” Rhodey asked.

“I’ve got no idea,” The pilot responded. 

“You have radio contact?” The major asked.

“Non-responsive, sir,”

“Then you are clear to engage.” The major confirmed.

Tony activated the supersonic flight, the sound barrier booming as he picked up speed.

“Bogey just went supersonic!” The second pilot said. “I’ve got a lock!” He fired as soon as the computer locked onto his target.

“Inbound missile,” JARVIS told Tony. 

“Flares!” Tony yelled as JARVIS deployed them. The missile exploded before reaching him but it knacked out Tony’s flight repulsors briefly before he caught himself. “Wait a second, bogey deployed flares!” Whiplash one yelled as they both rolled out of the way of the explosion.

They kept tailing Tony, shooting at him with the regular guns from their raptors. Tony dodged a lot of bullets but a few managed to hit his armor. It didn’t inflict any damage to the systems but Tony made sure to get out of their fire.

“Deploy flaps!” He flew back and was behind the raptors in no time, then safely tucked himself under one of them, holding tight to the belly of the plane. It successfully cut off the signal the military had on his armor.

“Holy-” Whiplash two gawked as he saw the bogey disappear behind their planes.

“Thing just dropped off the radar, sir,” Someone confirmed. 

“Side-visual has been lost,” another announced.

“No way that’s a UAV,” Whiplash one told them. 

“What is it?” The major asked in response. 

“I can’t see anything,” Whiplash two told them as he looked around frantically.

“Whatever it was, it just bought the farm,” Whiplash one said. “I think bogey has been handled, sir,” Rhodey just shook his head slightly, not quite believing it.

Rhodey’s cellphone started to ring, when he pulled it from his pocket, Tony’s profile picture and name were on the small screen of his flip phone. He answered after the second ring. “Hello?” He asked.

“Hi, Rhodey, it’s me.”

“It’s who?” Rhodey asked, completely fed up with Tony at the moment.

“Oh, I’m sorry, it is me, you asked… what you are asking about is me,” Tony whispered, sounding a little pained.

“No, see, this isn’t a game,” Rhodey told him seriously. “You don’t send civilian equipment into my active war zone, you understand that?”

“It’s not a piece of equipment,” Tony spoke louder this time, voice still one in pain. “I’m in it, it’s a suit. IT’S ME!” Tony yelled that last part. Rhodey’s face when pale as he looked to the radar screens.

“Rhodey, you got anything for me?” The major asked, clearly suspicious of his calls with Tony. Rhodey only lowered the phone as he looked to the major.

“Mark your position and return to base,” The pilots were ordered.

“Roger that, ballroom,” Whiplash one responded as Whiplash two turned his plane to carry out thier directive. When he did, Whiplash one caught a glimpse of the bogey attached to the belly of the plane and leaned in to get a better look.

“On your belly!” Whiplash one warned. “It looks like a… man!” Whiplash announced, everyone in the room hearing his astonishment. Rhodey just looked even more horrified. “Shake it off! Roll! Roll!” He told whiplash two, tailing right behind him.

When the plane started to roll, Tony could keep his hold and was launched backward in the air. Unfortunately, he hit the other raptor before he could catch himself, taking a wing off the plane. 

“I’m hit!” Whiplash one confirmed. “I’m hit!” 

Rhodey looked to the screen with wide eyes. He had to make sure that the pilot got out alright as well as Tony. Everyone looked ashen, the screen with Whiplash one’s plane flashing red.

“Punch out!” Whiplash two told him. “Punch out!” The pilot was able to go as directed and ejected his seat from the plane before it exploded. Now he was free-falling, everyone in the ballroom hearing his strangled breathing even with the oxygen provided by his mask.

“Whiplash one, down!” The second pilot announced. As a small triangle descended on the screens in the ballroom.

“Whiplash two, do you see a chute?” The major asked.

“Negative! No chute, no chute!” Came his panicked reply.

“My chute’s jammed!” Came whiplash one’s strangled voice.

Tony was going his max speed to catch up to the free-falling pilot, Whiplash two watching as he advanced.

“Sir, I’ve got a visual on the bogey,” Whiplash two confirmed.

“Whiplash two re-engage. If you get a clear shot, you take it.” The major told him. The plane responded to his orders.

“Major we don’t even know what we’re shooting at,” Rhodey told him. “Call off the raptors.”

“That thing just took down an F22 inside a legal no-fly zone. Whiplash two if you get a clear shot, take it.” The major responded angrily.

“You’ve been re-engaged,” JARVIS told Tony. “Execute evasive maneuvers,” JARVIS recommended.

“Keep going!” Tony told JARVIS as he reached for the pilot. When he got a hand on the chair, he pulled the pilot up, reached his free and for the chute. He broke the panel and pulled out some wires, watching them spark as the chute finally opened.

He heard the pilot grunt as he let go and continued his flight, hearing Whiplash one announce, “Good chute! Good Chute!” 

Cheers erupted in the ballroom knowing that thier pilot was going to be fine. Both pilots watched as Tony spun in the air, rolling as he made his way back to his home. One raptor followed as the other pilot made a safe descent to the ground where he’d be picked up.

“Tony,” Rhodey said as he put the phone back to his ear. He hadn’t hung up when Tony had called him back. “You still there?”

“Hey, thanks,” Tony replied. 

“Oh my god, you crazy son of a bitch,” Rhodey exhaled. “You owe me a plane, you know that right?”

Tony just chuckled a bit, then his face went serious. “Yeah, well technically he hit me, sooo.” Tony excused. Rhodey knew that Tony would replace the plane anyway, probably give it some upgrades too but that wasn’t the most important thing. “Now you gonna come by and see what I’m working on?” Tony asked, voice somewhat hopeful.

“No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. the less I know, the better.” He responded. “Now what am I supposed to tell the press?”

“Uh, training exercise. Isn’t that the usual BS?” Tony asked.

“It’s not that simple,” Rhodey told him.

\---

After Rhodey held a press conference- of course, he had to go with a training exercise excuse- he was on his way to see Tony. He wasn’t going to ask about his project, he didn’t want to know what that crazy man was working on but he needed to check in.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> See you soon! ;)


	5. Soldiering On

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony continues on his mission to destroy all his weaponry and help the people of Gulmira.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy! :)

Pepper descended the stairs to Tony’s workshop, noticing all the broken glass from the windows. She stepped through the now empty pane and looked to Tony. He was on a raised pedestal with some sort of metal suit covering his body. Machinery around him appeared to be trying to take said suit off.

“Hey! Ow! Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah.”

“Well it is a tight fit, sir,” She heard JARVIS say.

“Eh, ah!”

“Sir, the more you struggle, the more this is going to hurt,” The AI responded remorsefully.

“Be gentle, this is my first time,” Tony told him with a grunt. “I designed this to come off, so, ” he said in a normal voice. “Ow! Hey!” He groaned. “I really should be able… ah!”

“Please try not to move, sir,”

“Eh,” he once again grunted.

“What’s going on here?” Pepper asked over the whirring of the machines. It took Tony a moment to register that she was there and another second for him to turn his head to look at her as she stood behind him.

“Let’s face it, this is not the worst thing you’ve caught me doing,” Tony told her with a very small nod as his arms and legs were held in place by the mechanical arms trying to pry the suit away.

“Are those bullet holes?” She asked breathlessly.

\---

Once Rhodey was at Tony’s Malibu home, he had JARVIS lead Tony from his lab. Rhodey crossed his arms as a clearly exhausted Tony fumbled up the stairs and he instantly crossed his arms over his chest.

“You need to bathe, eat and sleep,” Rhodey told Tony.

“Is it going to be like this every time you pop in?” Tony asked jokingly, clearly remembering the last time. The only difference was that this time Tony was a bit stronger, and less exhausted so he was able to move around on his own.

“It will be if you keep making me do this,” Rhodey responded. “Now do I need to force you into the bathroom or are you going to walk in there yourself?” He asked as he moved closer to Tony.

Tony shied away, instantly studdering. “I-i got it,” he replied. “I can take care of myself,” Tony assured.

Rhodey just gave him a funny look. “JARVIS and I seem to disagree,” Rhodey told him.

Tony’s face went ashen and a look of betrayal swam in his eyes. “JARVIS-”

“Showed me everything,” Rhodey confirmed. “Now lets get you into a bath and get you some food,” Rhodey said, ushering a still flustered Tony into his private bathroom upstairs.

“I can do it myself!” Tony replied angrily, turning on the shower and stripping his clothes. He wasn’t really one for modesty and it wasn’t like Rhodey hadn’t seen him naked plenty of times before. 

“Fine,” Rhodey said. “I’ll go make us something to eat. Come down as soon as you’re done,” Rhodey told him.

“Yeah, yeah,” Tony replied.

“Tony,” Rhodey said in a warning tone.

“I’ve got it, Platypus,” Tony assured as he reached for his shampoo. “Don’t be such a mother hen.”

“I always have been,” Rhodey said quietly as he walked away. That was truer than he wouldn’t liked to admit. He’d always looked after Tony. He’d watched over the kid since college when Tony would drink himself into unconsciousness. There was always a desire to make sure Tony was okay.

\---

Pepper walked into Tony’s lab at his request. 

“Hey,” He spoke quietly. “You busy? You mind if I send you on an errand?” He asked her. “I need you to go to my office and hack into the mainframe. You’re going to retrieve all the recent shipping manifests. This is a lock chip,” He told her, offering her the drive as she reached out to take it.

“This will get you in,” He assured. She looked at it and then to him. “It’s probably under executive files if not, they put it on a ghost drive, in which case you need to look tool for the lowest numeric heading.” He told her as he walked back to his machinery. 

“And what do you plan to do with his information if I bring it back here?”

“Same drill,” Tony told her simply. “They’ve been dealing under the table and I’m going to stop them. I’m going to find my weapons, and destroy them.” Tony told her as he moved to another screen to continue his repairs.

“Tony,” She started. “You know that I would help you with anything,” she told him. “But I cannot help you if you are going to start all of this again.” She told him.

“There is nothing except this.” He told her with a slight glance back before he turned to face her fully. “There’s no art opening, there is no benefit, there is nothing to sign. There is the next mission and nothing else.” When Pepper looked into his eyes she only saw terror and emptiness. 

“That so?” She asked sadly. “Well, then I quit.” she threw the drive onto the table and turned to walk away.

“You stood by my side all these years while I reaped the benefits of destruction, and now that I’m trying to protect the people that I put in harm’s way you’re going to walk out?” he asked when she faced him once more.

“You’re going to kill yourself, Tony!” She told him. “And I’m not going to be a part of it!”

“I shouldn’t be alive,” He admitted to her, “Unless it was for a reason.” She gawked at him, eyes wide as he finally turned to face her, eyes wet but determined. She could see the flicker of the Tony that she had always known was there at that moment. “I’m not crazy, Pepper. I just finally know what I have to do, and I know in my heart, that it’s right,” he told her.

She took a few steps forward after letting out a sigh, grabbing the lock chip. “You’re all I have too, you know,” she replied as she walked out of the workshop, headed straight for SI.

\---

Pepper got into Tony’s office easily and started to download the data. She’d even happed across a threatening video sent to Stane as well as a Section 16 file. The Ten Rings told Stane that if he wanted them to kill Tony, he’d have to pay them way more.

Stane had walked in just as the video ended, scaring the crap out of Pepper. She was sure he knew what she was doing but after a brief talk, she walked out of Tony’s office, lock chip in hand. She ran into Coulson who instantly asked about their appointment and she told him to walk with her as she sped out of the building. 

“Miss Potts. We had an appointment,” He said from his chair. “Did you forget about our appointment?” 

“Nope,” She replied. “Right now. Come with me,”

“Right now?” He asked hurriedly as he got up with equal speed.

“We’re going to have it right now. Yup. Walk with me. I’ll give you the meeting of your life. Your office,” She assured breathlessly as she saw Stane watch her leave. Her looking back so many times and walking so fast had Coulson also looking behind them. He eyed Stane for a second before turning back to Pepper.

\---

Stane barged into Sector 16 angrily. After some mumbling from the scientist about the tech not existing, Stane blew up. “Tony stark was able to build this in a cave! With a box of scraps!” he yelled, pointing a finger at the scientist’s chest.

“Well, I’m sorry, I’m not Tony Stark.” The Scientist replied softly.

\---

Tony’s phone rang from the couch as he walked over. He picked it up, answering the phone but unable to say anything as he put the phone to his ear. He could hear her voice but was so startled by the ringing in his ear that he wasn’t able to breathe for a moment. 

Stane took the phone and hung up, cradling Tony’s head as the short-term paralysis took effect. “Breathe,” Obie told him. “Easy, easy,” Obie whispered. “You remember this one, right?” Obie asked him. “It’s a shame the government didn’t approve. There’s so many applications for causing short-term paralysis,” he told Tony as he walked around the couch.

Obie grabbed his face and turned it so he had to look Obie in the eyes as he took out the dampening earbuds. “Ah, Tony, when I uh, ordered the hit on you,” Obie started as Tony’s eyes shined bright with realization. “I worried that I was killing the golden goose,” he took out a small device with claws, settling it over the arc reactor on Tony’s chest.

The machine made some whirring noises and some smoke rose in the air as the shirt was burned away from the chest piece. “But, you see,” Obie continued as he plunged the claws into Tony’s chest, latching onto the arc reactor. Tony let out a pained grunt but was unable to do anything more. He pulled it slowly from Tony’s chest, the light from it lighting up their faces. “It was just fate that you survived that.” He told Tony. “You had one last golden egg to give,” He assured.

The wires of the reactor were still connected to the base place inside his chest as Obie leaned in. “Do you really think that just because you have an idea… it belongs to you?” Obie asked with an evil grin. “Your father… he helped give is the atomic bomb. Now, what kind of world would it be today if he was as selfish as you?” Obie asked as he yanked the cord free of the base plate.

Tony’s heart was shattering around him. Having the arc reactor yanked from his chest was something he’d always feared and now it was something that was actually happening. Hearing Obie talk about him the way he was just made Tony feel more worthless than Howard had. It just confirmed that Howard was right.

Then determination set it. He was going to do better than Howard ever did. He was going to be better than Howard ever thought he could be and he was going to do it on his own!

“Oh, it’s beautiful,” Stane whispered as he once again leaned closer to Tony, actually taking a seat next to him. “Oh, Tony, this is your ninth symphony,” Obie assured. “Oh, what a masterpiece. Look at that, this is your legacy,” He told the last Stark. “A new generation of weapons with this at its heart... “ Obie wounded wondered. “Weapons that will help steer the world back on course, put the balance of power in our hands. In the right hands,” Obie assured.

Obie scoffed as he pulled the briefcase onto his lap, the claw already inside as he safely tucked the arc reactor inside and closed it. “I wish you could see my prototype. It’s not as… well, not as conservative as yours,” Tony felt like Stane was never going to stop talking, he’d almost tuned out multiple times but the name Pepper on Obie’s tongue made him tune right back in. 

“Too bad you had to involve Pepper in all this,” He told Tony. “I would have preferred she lived,” That was the last thing Stane said to Tony as he walked out of the house as nothing had even occurred, leaving Tony paralyzed on the sofa, a hole in his chest.

\---

Rhodey was on the phone with Pepper as he drove through the city. “What do you mean he paid to have Tony killed?” He asked as Pepper rushed a response. “Pepper slow down,” Rhodey said calmly. “Why would Obediah…” He was cut off by her panic and responded with the only thing that would make Pepper calm down. “Okay, where is Tony now?” He asked.

“I don’t know, he’s not answering his phone,” She told him, “Please go over there and make sure everything is okay. Thank you, Rhodey.” She asked but also meant as a command as she lead Coulson and a group of agents int SI.

It was the first thing Rhodey had completely understood thier whole conversation and he assured that he would go and check on Tony. He made a sharp left turn, changing course to head straight for Tony’s Malibu beach house.

\---

Tony slumped against the elevator wall as it took him down to his workshop. Once the doors opened he fell t the ground as he struggled to make his way to his workbench. The paralysis was slowly wearing off but Tony still could barely feel his body as he crawled painfull on the floor to where he knew this old arc chest piece was.

He had kept the gift that Pepper had given him even if he claimed not to be sentimental when she had asked if he had wanted it. It was lucky he didn’t destroy it before. At least now he would have the arc keeping him alive. 

That was if he could get it into his chest before it was too late.

He tried everything he could to get to the chest piece, using a bin of tools to help prop himself up. His fingers brushed against the glass that protected the reactor as it slid further onto the table. He tried once more but collapsed on to the floor, barely rolling over onto his back.

He laid there in defeat for a few seconds only looking up when he heard Dummy whirring in his ear. The robot was holding out the arc reactor and Tony weakly grabbed the metal bottom of the container. “Good boy,” He whispered, summoning all his strength when he rolled over, smashing the glass on the floor as he covered his eyes with his left arm.

\---

Rhodey ran into Tony’s place calling his name. “Tony? Tony!” he yelled before turning to the stairs that lead to the workshop. He continued to call for Tony as he ran down the stairs. “Tony!” He walked through the broken panes of glass, “Tony?” he called loudly as he paused to look around. 

One look to his left and he saw Tony on the floor of the workshop, not moving. Tony had his arm resting on a piece of metal, surrounded by glass. “Tony!” Rhodey ran to his side, helping the man to roll over. “Tony! You okay?” He exclaimed breathlessly as he looked at Tony’s pale figure.

“Where’s Pepper?” Tony whispered as he latched onto Rhodey as the man helped him sit up.

“She’s fine, she’s with five agents, they’re about to arrest Obediah,” He told him.

“That’s not going to be enough,” Tony whispered angrily as he suddenly found the strength to get up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> See you soon! ;)


	6. The Final Fight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony fights Stane to save Pepper and stop his company from shipping his weapons.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy the chapter! :)

Pepper walked her way to the main doors of SI with the agents in tow. She swiped her card and gained access to the building instantly. She continued to lead them until she found Section 16 then again swiped her badge wanting access. This time, she was denied and the agents put a small device on the door’s lock.

“You might want to take a few steps back,” Coulson told her as he turned away. The five agents and Coulson took formation around her and stood facing away from the small explosive, arms crossed as they waited for it to go off. Pepper simply plugged her ears as the device went off. Not a single agent even flinched.

\---

Obie heard a small explosion and looked up. He activated the power sequence for the prototype suit and ran to get inside. 

\---

Machinery whirred around Tony as it attached the suit to his body piece by piece, the suit clicking into place.

“That is the coolest thing I’ve ever seen,” Rhodey confirmed a little breathlessly.

“Not bad, huh?” Tony asked in a quiet voice. “Let’s do it,” He said a little coldly, blasting the destroyed car that sat under the whole in Tony’s roof out of the way. He hadn’t gotten around to fixing that yet. Sue him.

“D’you need me to do anything else?” Rhodey asked loudly. 

“Keep the skies clear,” Tony told him after the mask clicked down over his face, the voice regulator changing his pitch lower a few octaves as Tony flew through the holes and out of his house.

“Damn,” Rhodey said after his friend left. He looked behind him where the silver suit hung from the wall. “Next time, baby.” He assured quietly as he got into Tony’s sports car and sped off. He needed to keep the military from interfering with Tony.

\---

Coulson led the way into Section 16 as the agents pulled thier weapons. The area was dark as they all stopped in front of Tony’s original suit. “Look’s like you were right. He was building a suit.”

“I thought it’d be bigger,” Pepper told them as she looked around a bit. There were a few exposed wires and they even found a screen with the prototype plans. Coulson made his way around, investigating everything.

Pepper looked around, seeing some loose chains hanging in front of a dark area. When she stepped closer for a better look, She saw two white eyes light up and she instantly started to run, screaming.

“Take him out!” one of the agents ordered as they all began to fire. Pepper continued her run for the door as Stane dealt with the agents. He ran forward as she made it through the door, reaching a hand out to try to grab her and failed.

\---

“How do you think the MRK1 chest piece is going to hold up?” Tony asked JARVIS.

“The suit’s at forty-eight percent power and falling, sir,” JARVIS responded. “That chest piece was never designed for sustained flight.”

“Keep me posted,” Tony told him as he made his way to SI. “Pepper,” Tony called as he connected to her Bluetooth. 

“Tony!” She yelled, bringing her hand up to the device in her ear. “Tony, are you okay?”

“I’m fine, how-” He assured as she rambled. 

“Oh, Obediah he’s… he’s gone insane! He… he built a suit and he’s…” she talked over Tony.

“I know, listen you better get out of there, get out of there right now, you understand?” Tony tried to tell her. She only stopped her rambling when she heard loud crunching noises coming from behind her. 

She turned, horrified to see Stane in the suit, coming up from underground. “Where do you think you’re going?” He asked her with a deep, modified voice.

“Oh!” She screamed, too terrified to actually move.

“Your services are no longer required…” He told her, aiming a weapon from his arm at her. Before he could shoot, Pepper heard Tony yelling.

“Staaaaaaaannnneeee!” Tony shouted as he flew in, dragging Stane’s attention to himself. Stane fired at him as Tony flew into him, their suits clinking as they made contact, Tony pushing him down to the ground and away from Pepper.

They crashed through a wall and onto a busy highway, Obie flinging a car out of the way as he got up, Tony lying on the street for a moment. The cars instantly started to swerve, each of the drivers terrified to be anywhere near whatever was on the highway.

They crashed into each other and Stane went as far as to pick up a car with a mother and her kids, yelling, “I love this suit!”

“Put them down!” Tony ordered.

“Collateral damage, Tony,” Stane said. 

“Revert power to chest RT,” Tony told JARVIS quietly. He blasted Stane, caught the car and placed it on the ground. “Power reduced to nineteen percent,” JARVIS informed. Unfortunately, the woman driving was so petrified that she stepped on the gas hard, dragging Tony and his suit beneath her car. “Lady!” He yelled before lifting up the rear end and tumbled out from the underneath.

He got back up, as Stane approached, grabbing a motorcycle and hitting him with it, not caring about the person who had been driving it. Tony flung back into another car on the higher section of the road. People fled as Tony got kicked into an abandoned bus by Obediah.

“Thirty years I’ve been holding you up,” Obie said with his modded voice as he lifted Tony into the air, smashing him into the ground roughly. He then stepped on Tony, his suit latching on and Tony’s not giving way. “I built this company from nothing!”Obie yelled as he pucked Tony back up. “And nothing’s going to stand in my way,” Obie assured as he threw Tony into the bus behind them. “Least of all… you!” A missile came out of Obie’s suit, aimed right at where Tony laid on the bus.

When the bus exploded, Tony was flung into the air. He was able to catch himself gracefully, more than twenty feet from hitting the ground as he activated his flight stabilizers.

“Impressive!” Obie laughed darkly. “You’ve upgraded your armor! I’ve made some upgrades of my own!” Obie said as his suit prepared to take flight.

“Sir, it appears that his suit can fly,” JARVIS told him.

“Duly noted,” Tony assured. “Take me to maximum altitude.”

“With only fifteen percent power the ods of reaching that are-”

“I know the math! Do it!” Tony told him as he looked up, launching himself higher into the sky. He flew faster than Stane as his suit was lighter and more aerodynamic.

AT THE BASE

“Sir you’re not going to believe this…” someone announced. “That thing is back.”

“Get me Major Allen,” he said. “Scramble the jets!” he ordered as Rhodey’s finger ended the dial tone.

“Not necessary people,” He assured. “Just a training exercise.”

IN THE AIR

“Thirteen percent power, sir,”

“Climb!” Tony ordered.

“Eleven percent,” JARVIS warned.

“Keep going!”

“Seven percent,” JARVIS told him as the power began to flicker.

“Just leave it on the screen, stop telling me!” Tony told him, annoyed.

Stane eventually caught up, grabbing Tony by the leg and pulling him closer as his suit iced up.

“You had a great idea, Tony, but my suit is more advanced in every way!” Stane told him.

“How’d you solve the icing problem?” Tony asked him cockily.

“Icing problem?” Stane asked as his suit glitched and powered down. 

“Might wanna look into it,” Tony told him, whacking the suit on the head as it started it’s free-fall back to earth. Tony hovered in the sky proudly.

“Two percent,” JARVIS said.

“Woah, Woah!” Tony exclaimed as his flight stabilizers cut in and out of power and he dropped altitude.

“We are now running on emergency backup power.” JARVIS notified.

“Woah!” yelled one more time as he continued his descent. 

He landed on the roof of SI and instantly called out for Pepper. “Potts?” Tony asked.

“Tony! Oh my god, are you okay?” She hurried to ask.

“I’m almost out of power. I’ve got to get out of thins thing,” He told her as he started to detach a few pieces of his suit, his left hand repulsor going first as he opened his helmet. He heard a loud thud behind him and turned, his mask dropping to protect his face as Stane swung at him.

“Nice try!” Stane yelled as he threw a punch that Tony dodged. Tony held his left hand out to shoot him with the repulsors but when noting happened he remembered he’d just stripped said hand of the suit. Obie threw another punch, knocking him feet away.

Tony managed to catch himself, scurry back a bit in Obie’s direction as he used the two repulsors to get a large jump in, landing a punch to Obie’s armored head. Obie caught him on the way down, crushing the suit in his arms as Tony struggled.

“Weapons status?” Tony grunted.

“Repulsors offline, missiles offline,” JARVIS told him.

“Flares!” Tony called, blinding Obie briefly when they were released and getting out of his grip. 

“Very clever, Tony,” Obie said darkly. 

Tony peeked around the wall he was hiding behind as Obie looked for him, “Potts?” He whispered.

“Tony!” She yelled into her Bluetooth.

“This isn’t working,” he told her, “we’re going to have to overload the reactor and blast the roof,”

“Well, how are you going to do that?” She asked.

“You’re going to do it,” He continued whispering. “Go to the central console, open up all the circuits. When I get clear of the roof, I’ll let you know, you’re going to hit the master bypass button.” He told her quietly as he spied on Obie. “It’s going to fry everything up here,” 

“Okay,” She told him, stepping through the broken glass doors. “I’m going in now.”

“Make sure you wait until I’m clear of the roof,” He reminded her. “I’ll buy you some time,” He continued as he snuck around to the other side of the wall, avoiding Obie’s eyes. 

Pepper started to open all the switches, then moved to the console and started opening all those fuses as well.

Tony jumped onto Obie’s back, looked at the wires that were exposed at the back of his neck and yanked a few out. “This looks important,” he yelled right before Obie’s screen went dark and he grabbed Tony, Flinging him across the roof. 

Tony landed on the glass sunroof above the reactor where he could see Pepper getting the reactor ready.

Obie’s suit opened and for the first time in their fight, Tony could hear his real voice. “I never had the taste for this sort of thing, but I must admit… I’m deeply enjoying the suit!” Obie assured as he crushed Tony’s helmet. He tossed the damaged tech toward tony with a wicked grin.

Tony looked up, determination clear in his eyes as Obie came closer. “You finally outdid yourself, Tony!” Obie called. “You made your father proud!” Those words felt like a stab to the heart. Tony didn’t care about Howard’s approval anymore. He didn’t!

Tony struggled but got up on one knee.

“It’s ready Tony, get off the roof!” Pepper yelled to him.

Stane fired some bullets, breaking the glass around Tony as he blocked the bullets with a shield on his arm. The glass beneath his feet broke and he fell, barely managing to grab into the window pane and lift himself to look at Stane.

Stane kept firing, as Pepper yelled. “Tony!” she called.

“How ironic, Tony!” He yelled. “Trying to rid the world of weapons… you gave it it’s best one ever!”

“Pepper!” Tony yelled.

“And now… I’m going to kill you with it!” Stane assured as he launched a missile toward Tony, missing completely. “You ripped out my targeting system,” Stane said.

“Time to hit the button!”

“You told me not to!” She replied.

“Hold still you little prick,” Stane told Tony as he fired again, missing but closer to his target. 

“Just do it!” He yelled.

“You’ll die!” She yelled back tearfully.

“Push it!” He once again yelled as he let go of the pane, now dangling from one arm. Pepper pushed the button and ran, getting out of the way of the overloading reactor core. Tony was flung from the window and hit a wall before coming to a dead stop.

The reactor electrocuted Stane, a bright light blasting up into the sky. Then, the man fell through the broken panes and into the reactor, causing the whole thing to explode in a yellow and orange fire.

Tony turned as the blast came up through the roof, knocked unconscious. As he laid there, tears staining his face, the reactor glitched, the lights flickering on and off until it finally stayed lit. “Tony!” Pepper called.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> See you soon! ;)


	7. I am Iron Man

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony takes up his title, meets with Fury and has some relaxing time with Rhodey.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy! :)

Rhodey was opening the press conference as Pepper helped Tony get ready for the cameras, putting on foundation and covering bruises as he talked to Coulson about how flimsy the cover story was.

She yanked off the last butterfly stitch from above his eyebrow and gave him a look. She then helped him put his blazer on as he held his notecards in his mouth and continued to babble. Coulson took his leave and Pepper thanked him. 

He assured her that this is what there were here for and that they’d be hearing from Coulson again. She started to say the long name of the agency he was connected to and he stopped her. 

“Just call us S.H.I.E.L.D.” He told her.

“Right,” she replied with a smile.

Iron Man was catchy but inaccurate. It had a nice ring to it, he assured her and when he told her that he didn’t think he was Iron man, himself. She assured her that he wasn’t which he responded with, “am so”. 

Their little squabble went on for a few seconds before he had to go and make his statement.

Rhodey introduced him and Tony stepped up to the microphone. There, he babbled, conflicted about the cover story until he got a whisper in the ear from Rhodey telling him to stick to the cards. 

He let out a sigh. “The truth is…” He looked up. No. This wasn’t going to be a secret. He wasn’t going to let Obie and Howard win. He wanted to share his gifts with everyone. “I am Iron Man,” He admitted, causing the room to erupt in a roar of questions that Tony would never answer.

\---

“JARVIS?” Tony asked as he walked into his home. 

“Welcome home, sir,” JARVIS’s voice faded as he was deactivated. None of the lights came on as he walked into the room. 

“I am Iron Man,” A voice rang out. “You think you’re the only superhero in the world?” The man asked. “Mr. Stark, you’ve become part of a bigger universe and you just don’t know it yet.”

“Who the hell are you?” Tony asked suspiciously. 

“Nick Fury,” the man replied as he walked around in the dark, finally stepping into the light. “Director of S.H.I.E.L.D.”

“Huh,” he heard Tony mumble, not moving or giving off any other emotions.

“I’m here to talk to you about the Avenger Initiative.”

\---

Rhodey stopped by the next day, waking Tony up around noon. It was unusual for Tony to get more than three hours of sleep within three days let alone nearly ten hours within one sitting. It left him feeling wonky.

“What are you doing here?” Tony asked as he sat up from where he was sprawled out on the couch.

“I’m here to look after you,” Rhodey assured as he sat down next to where Tony struggled to get up. Every bit of Tony was sure to be sore and stiff.

“There’s no need,” Tony replied. “I can take care of myself.”

“But wouldn’t it be better if someone else did it for you?” Rhodey asked, making Tony pause. “You work so hard, wouldn’t you like a break to let that big brain of yours rest and not have to worry about anything for a little while?”

Tony looked at him in contemplation. He knew Rhodey knew about the age-play. He wasn’t oblivious and he had known what he was doing. It had taken him a little while to actually notice, don’t get him wrong, but once he had, that switch flipped in his head. It had been relaxing to be able to shut his brain off and do things he hadn’t gotten to do when he was little.

Rhodey watched as Tony began analyzing and assessing. The look on his face and in his eyes was always astonishing when Rhodey noticed him working through a problem in his head. When Tony finally turned his eyes back to Rhodey, locking eyes with him, he only gave a nod.

The nod he got from Tony was the only thing he needed to get up and pull Tony from the couch, lifting him by his armpits. Tony let out a squeak but otherwise stayed quiet as Rhodey placed Tony on his hip.

“Do you have anything for when you play?” Rhodey asked seriously. When Tony nodded without a verbal answer, hiding his face away bashfully, Rhodey looked to the ceiling. “JARVIS?”

“Sir has supplies in the workshop,” JARVIS confirmed. “They’re in one of the closets.”

Rhodey nodded and made his way into the workshop. The duffle was easy to find if someone ever really went looking. It wasn’t hidden, just shoved into the closet like it actually belonged there. Rhodey yanked it from the closet and walked back upstairs.

Tony was dead silent and stiff like he was nervous. “Relax, Tony,” Rhodey told him gently. “I took care of you all the time in college,” he reminded him. Tony mumbled something into his shoulder, the only reason Rhodey knew what he meant is because it was Tony. Rhodey always knew what Tony was thinking. “I know this is different but it won’t be the first time I’ve given you a bath, hand-fed you, or put you to bed. Hell, I contemplated putting you in diapers based on how often you got so drunk and lost control of your bladder,” Rhodey told him honestly. He could feel Tony’s face heat up from embarrassment at the mention of his black-out drunk days. He’d caused Rhodey a lot of trouble back then. He mumbled into Rhodey’s shoulder again. Was Rhodey sure he wanted to do this? It was a lot of trouble…

“Yes, I’m sure,” Rhodey laughed as he set Tony onto his bed. He opened the duffle and looked inside, taking in all the supplies. There were diapers, surly because JARVIS insisted on them, a few pieces of clothing, a sippy cup, a bottle, and a pacifier. There were even a few toys and some coloring supplies.

Rhodey was honestly startled that Tony had willingly bought himself this stuff. When had he even had the time while he was developing the armor, attacking the Ten Rings, and stopping Stane? Tony had a hard year, what with the betrayal, nearly dying more than once, fighting off new enemies and saving those he could. Not to mention the serious PTSD he surely had to have from his time as a captive.

He remembered Tony’s fear of water and wondered if that only intensified when he was in his Little headspace. Surely there were other things that triggered any fears he would have gotten over the past few months. He’d have to be very careful when he happened across those triggers, making sure that once they were discovered, that they were avoided as much as possible.

He got Tony changed, then picked him back up, “How about some cartoons and a snack?” Rhodey asked as he carried the boy into the living area of the beach house. He placed Tony on the carpet as JARVIS pulled up the cartoons. Tony just looked at him with wide brown eyes. Tony looked so vulnerable from his spot on the floor. He looked so little and very lost. 

Cute. That’s the only word Rhodey could use to describe Tony at the moment.

Tony let out a squeal as JARVIS started the movie Wall-E. Apparently, it was one of Little Tony’s favorites. Rhodey took not, watching as Tony clapped his hands happily as the movie began. He smiled, turning to the kitchen to make some food.

JARVIS had told Rhodey that while Tony had never specified an age-range, he assumed Tony to be about sixteen months, possibly younger. Rhodey could agree with the assessment JARVIS gave him. Tony didn’t seem to be capable of even talking in his Littlespace with the way he was acting.

Rhodey looked at the bottle in his hands in contemplation. Would Tony accept it if he filled it with milk? It was worth a shot, Rhodey thought as he filled it and began to heat the bottle. He made himself a couple of sandwiches as he waited for the milk to slowly heat up. When it was ready, he took the bottle and his sandwiches back to the living area where Tony waited.

When Rhodey had Tony in his sights, he noticed that Tony’s hand had found its way into his mouth, chewing on it as he focused solely on the movie. When Rhodey got close, he knelt down with the bottle in one hand, reaching out to Tony with the other. “How about we try this instead of chewing our fingers?” Rhodey asked rhetorically as he pulled Tony’s hand from his mouth.

Tony let out a startled whine when he heard Rhodey speak, and another when Rhodey pulled his hand from his mouth. His eyes started to tear and then something was placed in his mouth. He instantly brought his hands up to grab it, noting how the warm milk spilled into his mouth. He let out a content sigh, letting his eyes close.

Rhodey got up once Tony settled and walked over to the couch where he took a seat. He then reached for his plate of sandwiches on the coffee table and settled back against the couch. He enjoyed his sandwiches as Tony enjoyed his movie. 

Soon enough the bottle was empty, though that didn’t mean Tony’s stopped sucking and chewing on it. Rhodey chuckled a little as he got up and rummaged through the duffle until he found what he was looking for.

Rhodey once again approached Tony and pulled the bottle from his mouth. Tony sent him a pretty nasty glare and Rhodey had to refrain from laughing. “I know, so mean. But look! I’ve got something you can chew on!” Rhodey said as he held up the pacifier. 

Tony just looked at him with teary eyes and Rhodey moved to push it into his mouth. Tony instantly latched on, unsurprising to Rhodey. Seconds later, Tony was looking back to the TV happily as the movie continued. 

Jeez, Tony sure changed his emotions as fast as a child did. He just shrugged and went back to his seat on the couch, turning his eyes to the movie. There was a good hour left if he had to guess and Tony sure as hell wasn’t going to be paying attention to anything else until it was over.

\---

Tony woke up the next morning and rubbed his eyes, trying to banish his blurry vision. He rolled onto his belly, throwing his weight around until he was able to actually manage the task. He pushed himself up on his arms and leaned back and sat on his feet.

He let out a massive yawn, his paci falling from his mouth as he continued to rub his eye with one closed, tiny fist. He startled when someone spoke from behind him. “Hey, buddy, sleep well?” Rhodey asked him, watching as Tony turned around.

Tony nodded, lifting his arms up as a way of asking Rhodey to lift him. Rhodey complied, grabbing Tony’s pacifier from where it sat on the bed. “How about we have some pancakes for breakfast?” Rhodey asked as Tony clapped happily, kicking his feet in excitement.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> See you soon! ;)

**Author's Note:**

> See you soon! :)


End file.
